.｡.:✧ Chapter 9 ✧:.｡.

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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It wasn’t for no reason that the old saying advised sending your child to Seoul no matter what after they were born.
Twenty years had passed since experiencing the mysterious phenomenon of reincarnation.
I, who had only known the tiny Weiss County, finally arrived in the capital of the Esgelant Empire. The moment I stepped out of the teleportation circle, an entirely different world came into view.
With no proper roads, just roughly paved with stones, small houses were clustered haphazardly along the paths, and beyond the minuscule manor, there were only forests and wheat fields as far as the eye could see—a sight I had grown accustomed to for twenty long years, but still found challenging to adjust to.

“…Wow.”
To be honest, I was a bit taken aback, letting out a small exclamation inadvertently.
The only part of this world I had experienced was the rural backwater of the Weiss County. But here in the capital, I realized that most of my basic knowledge about this world was mistaken.
I had only envisioned scenery reminiscent of medieval Europe from the media, but in some ways, it seemed more advanced, even evoking a modern era.
Like the greenhouse garden in full bloom within the Imperial Palace, or the stone street lamps lining the walking paths.

“You’ll be even more amazed soon enough,” remarked Princess Elena with a wry smile, arms folded as she observed my reaction.
And so, I had to go through the process of shattering the assumptions I had taken for granted and correcting the significant errors in my understanding.
Aha! It wasn’t that the technological level of this world was backward; I had simply assumed as much because the Weiss County was such a rural backwater that it could not enjoy those advanced amenities!
Hmm, the error has been perfectly corrected.

As I nodded my head in realization, the Imperial Court Mage—or rather, my soon-to-be mentor—Lorenzo cleared his throat.
“Will the Princess be returning to the palace straight away?”
“If there’s nothing else, then yes. Will you be heading to your research lab, Theo?”

[T/N: Theo appears to be a nickname.]

“Yes, I’m afraid there’s quite a bit of work that has piled up in my absence.”
“I apologize for taking up so much of your valuable time.”
“Not at all, Your Highness,” Lorenzo replied with a bow…Ah, perhaps I shouldn’t address him so formally. I should simply call him Master.

In any case, when Master indicated his intention to return to his lab, Princess Elena nodded. Then, her gaze turned towards me.
“In that case, Theo, you should take care of the matter concerning Rudrick. After all, you’ll be taking him on as your new disciple, won’t you?”

“Such a trivial matter is hardly cause for concern, Your Highness. Of course, I’ll handle it myself.”
The way he phrased it made it sound like I was some burdensome task being foisted upon them.
My somber expression must have shown on my face, prompting her response.
“Speaking of people as though they’re baggage to be unloaded—I apologize if I’ve offended you, Rudrick.”

“…No, I wouldn’t say I was quite offended to that degree.”
“At the very least, let me assure you of this.”
Inexplicably, Princess Elena went on to apologize and speak in a softer tone—a demeanor that seemed to catch even Master off guard, though she continued with a gentle smile.

“Up until now, you’ve been wasting your talents, Rudrick. But here, you’ll have a stage to unleash them freely. It will undoubtedly be a better choice than remaining in the Weiss County. Theo is counted among the Empire’s foremost mages; I’ll vouch for that myself. You’ll surely have much to learn from him. If you diligently apply yourself, you can become a great mage of the future.”

Leaving those words of encouragement, Princess Elena departed with her knights, saying she would take her leave.
It was a rather artful approach, enough that an ordinary man of this world might have been utterly smitten by her beauty and charm. But I, retaining the memories of my past life, was unaffected.
And there was one more crucial point:
‘So far, there’s only one regressor…’

I had yet to lay eyes on the other four. The concept wasn’t about lining up five candidates to choose from, as if at a pageant. I simply didn’t know anything yet.
What circumstances would lead all five of them to regress all willy-nilly? What had happened that I was unaware of?
Since I still didn’t know what was going on, there was no need for me to recklessly take risks, was there?
You could call it overly cautious, but there’s wisdom in the saying, “Test the waters before crossing the bridge.”

“…Well then, I suppose we should get going, Rudrick.”
“Oh, yes.”
Shaken from my reverie by Master’s voice calling me, I followed in his footsteps.
“So we’re heading to the Imperial Court Mage’s research lab?”
“It’ll get tiresome if you keep calling me that. This old man would prefer if you simply called me Master.”

“Then could you also speak less formally? After all, I am your disciple, so it feels a bit…odd when you constantly use honorifics with me.”
“Hah, does it make you uncomfortable?”
“Well, yes, a little.”
Master let out a hearty laugh at my candid response.

“Very well then, we’ll address each other informally, Rudrick.”
“That would be preferable for me as well.”
“To answer your earlier question, yes, we’re going to the lab. Let’s have a leisurely chat first when we arrive. And we should start thinking about accommodations for you as well.”

A conversation with someone I would be spending a significant amount of time with going forward.
If I had to compare it to my past life, it was akin to speaking with a graduate school advisor.
While the stereotypical image of a mage might be an eccentric shut-in obsessed with research, fortunately, that didn’t seem to be the case here.

…Based on our conversation so far, we do seem to communicate well. If I ended up having to live like a desperate graduate student in the Imperial Palace against all odds, then I might seriously consider making a break for the Magistower.
At least for now, things weren’t too bad. Events were unfolding reasonably well so far.
At least for now.

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The northern lands were harsh and unforgiving year-round. Even summers were cool and chilly, and brutal snowstorms would rage every winter. No wonder the northern people were often described as brusque and devoid of warmth, a product of their severe environment.

“Nothing has changed from what I remember.”
The teleportation circle connecting the Nord Duchy and the capital of the Esgelant Empire was an extremely convenient magical creation.
In the blink of an eye, Eileen Nord—commonly referred to in the imperial court as the Northern Grand Duchess—could arrive in the capital. Naturally, her vassals vehemently protested when she abruptly decided to make the trip to the capital herself, but they could not dissuade her stubbornness.

With a wistful expression, Eileen surveyed her surroundings as she strode through the streets, her distinct northern stoicism rendering her emotions inscrutable.
Having led armies to defend the Great Northern Wall from barbarians and demons dozens of times, and being among the most formidable swordswomen in the Nord Duchy, an aura of coldness seemed to emanate from her very footsteps.
As a result, not a soul dared approach her, even without a single guard in her company.

‘It’s almost more convenient this way, without the crowds.’
Eileen’s gaze inadvertently fell upon the Imperial Palace as that stray thought crossed her mind.
By now, her sworn enemies would undoubtedly be residing within those palace walls—at the very least, one, but perhaps as many as two.
The tyrannical Second Princess who had tenaciously clawed her way to the throne, one of Eileen’s most formidable rivals. And the dragon that had cunningly disguised itself as a human mage to indulge in leisurely hobbies within the palace halls.

Though the two had been utterly detestable adversaries, Eileen now regarded them with a sense of composure, as if they posed no threat.
After all, she had already experienced the miracle of reincarnation. Her former enemies remained oblivious to the future she had witnessed, forcing her to return to the past to correct the deviations.
Armed with the vast knowledge of what was to come, what did she have to fear?

“…Nothing,” Eileen muttered under her breath, shaking her head slightly, her long black hair swaying down to her waist.
The only thing she dreaded now was the prospect of failing to change anything.

Continuing her unhurried gait, Eileen casually passed through the outer palace gates. Just as she was entering the inner grounds, intending to seek out the Second Princess Elena…

“You’ve returned sooner than expected. I heard the Second Princess had gone on an inspection tour.”
“Yeah, I thought it would take her about a week. These ‘inspection tours’ nobles go on are really just glorified vacations, aren’t they?”
“Pretty much.”

As some of the knights guarding the outer gates gossiped during their shift change, Eileen’s footsteps momentarily halted upon overhearing their conversation.
‘The Second Princess went on an inspection tour…?’

By sheer coincidence, the subject of the guards’ idle chatter happened to be the very person Eileen was on her way to meet.
Unaware that she had stopped to eavesdrop, the guards carried on with their gossip.

“So where did the Second Princess go this time? She’s not usually one for these inspection tours, finding them tedious.”
“I don’t know either. It was some landed estate I’d never heard of before. The Weiss County? I didn’t even know we had nobles with that title in the Empire.”
“It’s probably just some backwater with a fancy name playing at being nobility.”
“Well, it was something like Bice or Bide, I heard.”

As the guards continued their trivial banter about “the Bice County” or whatever they called it, Eileen’s body grew rigid.
Unless she had misheard, the guards clearly stated that the Second Princess Elena had embarked on an inspection tour to the Weiss County—the very place Rudrick Weiss was from. Not anywhere else, but the Weiss County in particular.

Eileen was no fool; she could never forget the surname of the man she had loved.
Her heart raced violently in an instant. The calm, unperturbed expression she had maintained only moments ago was now cracked, replaced by utter shock as her mind rapidly processed the implications.

Eileen Nord had regressed.
And Elena Esgelant, once Eileen’s sworn enemy, had just returned from an inspection tour to the Weiss County, where Rudrick Weiss —who Eileen still harbored lingering affections for—resided.

Fresh off the heels of her own miraculous reincarnation, an event she could scarcely believe, Eileen was in a uniquely open-minded state to consider the possibilities.
It didn’t take her long to arrive at the conclusion. In a trembling, hushed voice, Eileen murmured in disbelief:

“I wasn’t the only one…who regressed?”

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